"Amen."
Kurt Gerstein (Ulrich Tukur) is a chemist who joined the notorious Nazi SS not for political reasons but because he thought that he could best serve his country in that uniform. His project on water purification, using a chemical called Zyklon-B, comes under the scrutiny of those responsible for Hitler's "Final Solution" and the idealistic lieutenant soon learns about the other application for the poisonous substance - to kill Jews and other undesirables in helmer Costa-Garvas's powerful film, "Amen."
Gerstein is outraged by the turn of events as his superiors assign him to supply the death camps with sufficient quantities of the deadly chemical to destroy "11 to 12 million units by 1948." (In one of the film's most stunning and gut wrenching scenes, Gerstein is shown, in a staged demonstration, what the effect the gas has on the test "units" it is used on. The scene is near silent as the shocked lieutenant sees, through a view port, the horror that will soon become the routine of the concentration camps.) This terrible knowledge forces Gerstein to find any allies within Germany to put an end to the extermination machine.
Gerstein seeks the aid of civilian community leaders to end the atrocities but his pleas fall on deaf ears. He then asks members of the Protestant clergy to intervene but is told that his story would not be believed. When he approaches the head of the Catholic Church in Germany, a cardinal, his fears over the murder of millions is brushed aside with "We've become accustomed to the Jews' endless moaning." A young priest, Father Riccardo Fontana, whose father is a highly placed influence in the Vatican, heeds the German's warning of the looming horror and tries to use his influence to get a papal decree denouncing the atrocities. The Pontiff refuses, not wanting to raise the ire of the Nazis or risk their occupation of the Vatican. Gerstein and Father Fontana continue to seek support for their lost cause.
Based on true events, Costa-Gavras and Jean-Claude Grumberg adapt the play "Der Stellvertreter" (The Deputy) by Rolf Hochhuth, focusing on the real life Kurt Gerstein as the unwitting participant in the mass murders that would become known as the Holocaust. His expertise in the manufacture and dispersal of the dread Zyklon-B makes him the perfect candidate to supply the Reich with the necessary amounts of the poison to fulfill their goal to free Nazi-occupied Europe of the yoke of the Jews. His utter revulsion to the killing forces him to seek some official reproach to stop the escalating death toll. When Father Fontana (a character that is an amalgamation of all the priests who stood up against the Nazi killers) takes up Gerstein's banner, it looks like the young priest may be able to get the cooperation of the Pope, himself. History tells us, though, that this is not to be.
Costa-Gavras takes a black-and-white approach to the events that are depicted in "Amen." He stays true to Gerstein's story but takes some liberties in telling of the involvement, or lack thereof, by the Vatican in protesting the death camps. The filmmaker shows, with the personification of Father Fontana, that the clergy within the Catholic Church shared Gerstein's loathing for the Nazi atrocities. But, he also walks a fine line in denouncing the Church leadership for its failure to overtly castigate the Germans for their genocidal deeds. The Vatican, privately, abhorred the Nazi policy, but Costa-Gavras sets the expectation that more, much more, should have been done by the Catholic leadership at the time to protest the Nazi policy.
One of the main draws for "Amen" is the outstanding performance, among others, by Ulrich Tukur. I had only seen the actor in the recent rendition of "Solaris" (in which he gave a notable perf in a small role) and was bowled over by the intensity and passion he gives to Kurt Gerstein. Although thoroughly repulsed by the murderous intent of the Nazis, Gerstein stayed in the SS in order to be an eyewitness to the events. The actor gives his character depth, dimension and humanity as a man torn between his duty to his country and the moral indignation over the deeds of his leaders.
Mathieu Kassovitz also does a fine job as the young, dedicated priest who understands Gerstein and takes hold of the German soldier's humane cause. Father Fontana uses all of his considerable influence within the Church, due to his father's position, to change Vatican policy in denouncing the Nazi barbarism. His failure to do so actually strengthens his faith in God and leads to his own sacrifice. Kassovitz gives a moving performance as outraged priest. The numerous supporting roles are used to good effect on many levels - from the production-minded attitude of the SS killers in eliminating their assigned "units" to the pomp and power of the Vatican officials as they walk the balance beam between denouncing the Germans and supporting them through the Church's official silence on the matter of the Holocaust.
Production values are high across the board. Cinematography by Patrick Blossier is some of the finest I have seen this year. The many and varied sequences of trains trundling across the landscape are beautifully composed and give you an empty feeling as the meaning of the tightly closed cattle cars heading east with their human cargo is made clear. Music, by Armand Amar, especially over the train sequences, conveys the urgency of Gerstein's plight and the relentlessness of the extermination machine put into action by Hitler and his henchmen. Production design by Ari Hantke captures the many locales from the vast death camps to the heart of the Vatican. Costume design by Edith Vesperini accurately depicts the daunting militarism of the SS uniforms, the pompous elegance of the upper level Catholic clergy and the simplicity of Father Fontana's cassock and other period outfitting.
Some may complain that the whole Holocaust "thing" has been overdone. I don't think it is mined enough and give kudos to Costa-Gavras and his cast and crew in bringing us to a time and place when mankind struggled for its very survival. I give "Amen" an A.
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